VOA慢速英语2009-Economics Report - Bonus Pay at AIG Strikes a Ne

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

Anger was the common reaction of Americans this week to bonuses paid at rescued financial companies. Lawmakers held hearings and President Barack Obama denounced the extra pay at American International Group. The huge insurance company nearly collapsed¹ last September.
　
A.I.G. chief Edward Liddy waits to speak to lawmakers on Wednesday. Code Pink protesters demonstrate behind.

Since then, it has received more than one hundred seventy billion dollars in government aid. Taxpayers² now own about eighty percent of the company. Billions loaned to A.I.G. have gone to pay debts owed to Goldman Sachs and other American and foreign banks.

But the anger was directed mainly at one hundred sixty-five million dollars in bonuses paid to employees of A.I.G. Financial Products. That division caused many of the company's problems.

The bonuses were retention³ payments -- a way to keep good employees. Yet some who got them at A.I.G. have already left.

On Wednesday, A.I.G.'s new chief, Edward Liddy, told Congress that he has asked employees to return at least half of bonuses of one hundred thousand dollars or more. Some, he said, have already done so.

Even some critics agreed that A.I.G. had to honor contracts. But Thursday, the House of Representatives voted to place a ninety percent tax on those bonuses at A.I.G. and at other companies getting large bailouts. Yet such a measure could violate the Constitution's guarantee of equal protection under the law.

Earlier in the week, the president directed Treasury⁴ Secretary Tim Geithner to look for ways to block the bonuses. But there were questions about why new restrictions⁵ on companies had excluded contracts dated before February eleventh, including those at A.I.G.

Opinion polls show that more than half of Americans oppose more aid for the financial industry. Some observers said it was easy for politicians to attack big bonuses. Much harder, of course, is changing a system that let companies take the risks that led to the current financial crisis.

The Federal Reserve this week announced a new trillion-dollar plan to fight the recession. The aim is to help lower interest rates on housing and other loans and improve credit conditions.

The central bank said it would buy up to an additional seven hundred fifty billion dollars in mortgage-related securities. The Fed will also buy up to three hundred billion dollars of long-term Treasury bonds. The Fed has not tried to influence long-term rates this way since the nineteen sixties.

And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report, written by Mario Ritter. Transcripts⁶, MP3s and podcasts of our programs are at voaspecialenglish.com.

1 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

2 taxpayers   

纳税人，纳税的机构( taxpayer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Finance for education comes from taxpayers. 教育经费来自纳税人。
• She was declaiming against the waste of the taxpayers' money. 她慷慨陈词猛烈抨击对纳税人金钱的浪费。

3 retention   

n.保留，保持，保持力，记忆力

参考例句：

• They advocate the retention of our nuclear power plants.他们主张保留我们的核电厂。
• His retention of energy at this hour is really surprising.人们惊叹他在这个时候还能保持如此旺盛的精力。

4 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

5 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

6 transcripts   

n.抄本（ transcript的名词复数 ）；转写本；文字本；副本

参考例句：

• Like mRNA, both tRNA and rRNA are transcripts of chromosomal DNA. tRNA及rRNA同mRNA一样，都是染色体DNA的转录产物。 来自辞典例句
• You can't take the transfer students'exam without your transcripts. 没有成绩证明书，你就不能参加转学考试。 来自辞典例句